Torn apart: the vicious war over young adult books

Authors who write about marginalised communities are facing abuse, boycotts and even death threats. What is cancel culture doing to young adult fiction?Earlier this month, the author and screenwriter Gareth Roberts announced that his story was being removed from a forthcoming Doctor Who anthology. Having been shown Roberts’s past tweets about transgender people, BBC Books said that his views “conflict with our values as a publisher”. At least one of the book’s other contributors, Susie Day, had promised to withdraw from the project if Roberts were included. “I raised my concerns, and said if he was in, I was out,” Day said.A few days before, at the Hay festival, the Irish author John Boyne had described a campaign against his own book, My Brother’s Name Is Jessica, about a boy and his trans sister. He was insulted on Twitter for his appearance and his sexuality. (Like Roberts, he is gay but not trans.) Some critics proposed a boycott of Boyne’s novel, which was not withdrawn. Others made veiled threats to his safety. “I don’t feel it’s my job as a reader or a writer to tell anyone what they can or can’t write,” Boyne said. “We are supposed to use our imaginations, to put ourselves into the minds and the bodies of others.”I've heard of publishers cancelling books and asking their authors to apologise, fearing the consequences if they didn’tThe wars may even spread – there have been two campaigns against adult novels on the basis of identity this year Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2019-06-15 08:00:15 UTC ]
News tagged with: #transgender people #bbc books #hay festival #ve heard #adult novels #irish author

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Torn apart: the vicious war over young adult books'


Bryony Gordon to examine mental illness in new Headline book

Headline has signed two more books by author and Daily Telegraph columnist Bryony Gordon, including one looking at mental illness. Gordon is the author of The Wrong Knickers, also from Headline and about Gordon’s 20s, which has sold 45,225 copies through Nielsen BookScan to date. Her first new... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #mental illness #wrong knickers #nielsen bookscan


Adult Fiction Print Units Bouncing Back in 2015

Since ebook sales exploded in 2009–2010, the adult fiction category has seen the steepest drop in print units of all the major book segments as readers migrated to digital formats, particularly in such fiction genres as romance, mystery, and science fiction. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #steepest drop #print units #digital formats #fiction genres #science fiction


Musician Herbert launches debut book on Unbound

Unbound is crowd funding for a new book by ‘iconic’ producer and musician Matthew Herbert.   Instead of producing a new record, Herbert’s debut book, The Music, will describe in “precise and almost poetic detail” how the record will sound. It will be divided into chapters the way an album is... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #debut book


PW Asks: Yes, Actors Invade the Books Whose Characters They Portray

We asks readers whether seeing a book character portrayed on film made it impossible to imagine that character in their own way when reading. Most said yes. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pw asks


The State of US Illustrated Book Publishing (Part 2)

PP Exclusive: The continuation of our series looking at the increasingly competitive and innovative illustrated book publishing market in the United States. The post The State of US Illustrated Book Publishing (Part 2) appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pp exclusive #increasingly competitive


Headline hosts first Rooftop Book Club

Headline launched its Rooftop Book Club last night (19th August) at London’s Carmelite House with author Tasmina Perry saying the industry needed to work out how to “put the entertainment into publishing”. The event hosted authors Perry, Stella Newman and Jo Thomas in conversation with Heat... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #carmelite house #jo thomas #heat magazine #isabelle broom


New Kevin Pietersen book out this autumn

Sphere is to release a new book by Kevin Pietersen this autumn, focussing “squarely” on events on the pitch. Pietersen’s KP: The Autobiography, released last year, has sold 106,654 copies through Nielsen BookScan to date. In the book Pietersen criticised a number of his former England cricket... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #nielsen bookscan #modern age


New Jane Austen film based on Carolyn V Murray book

The life of Jane Austen is set to be the subject of a new film called "Jane by the Sea", based on the novel by Carolyn V Murray (Sandcastle Press). Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jane austen #film called


The State of US Illustrated Book Publishing (Part 1)

PP Exclusive: The first in a series looking at the increasingly competitive and innovative illustrated book publishing market in the United States. The post The State of US Illustrated Book Publishing (Part 1) appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-08-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pp exclusive #increasingly competitive


S&S Partners with Hotels.com to Get E-Books into Travelers Hands

In the partnership, Hotels.com customers who book a minimum two-night stay in select U.S. destinations will have the opportunity to download one of seven free ebooks from S&S. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ss partners #free ebooks


Damiani Books jumps into new venture

Damiani Books is reissuing the 1959 photography book Philippe Halsman’s Jump Book (September, £30), which features 197 photos of celebrities jumping. For a period in the mid-1950s portrait photographer Halsman, who died in 1979, asked his subjects to jump at the end of a session. He wrote: “In... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Debut novel wins oldest book prize

Zia Haider Rahman's debut novel In the Light of What We Know wins the prestigious James Tait Prize for fiction. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2015-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Games Meet Books at Gamescom Cologne

Gamescon Cologne and the Frankfurt Book Fair invited rights pros from book publishing, video games and others to meet and discuss rights and licensing. The post Games Meet Books at Gamescom Cologne appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book publishing #video games


Sort of Books teams up with Sophie Hannah

Sort of Books is publishing a collection of supernatural short stories by Sophie Hannah called The Visitors Book (October, £8.99). Hannah has worked with Sort of Books since 2001, when she helped produce an English-language version of Tove Jansson’s children’s stories in verse. This was... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sophie hannah #english-language version #tove jansson


FIFA scandal book bought by Century

Century is to publish The Dirty Game: Uncovering the Scandal at FIFA by Andrew Jennings, the investigative reporter whose evidence provided the basis of the FBI investigation that led to the arrests of FIFA executives and the resignation of Sepp Blatter. Jennings has been investigating FIFA for... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #andrew jennings #investigative reporter #sepp blatter


Elton John blasts 'boorishly bigoted' Italian mayor for LGBT book ban

Elton John, the singer-songwriter known for his advocacy for gay rights, has strongly criticized Mayor Luigi Brugnaro of Venice, Italy, for banning 49 LGBT-themed children's books from the city's schools. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2015-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #elton john #gay rights


PW Asks: Does the Film Prevent You From Imagining the Characters in the Book?

When a book gets made into a film, do the actors faces forever prevent readers from imagining how the characters look? Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pw asks


The 65-Storey Treehouse fastest selling book in a decade

Too many children's books are boring and do not treat their audience with respect, according to best-selling author Andy Griffiths. Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald

[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2015-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep children's book tops best seller list

An insomniac rabbit is the hero of a book which has become a surprise best seller. Continue reading at Stuff

[ Stuff | 2015-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book tops #seller list


Here are the 6 books on President Obama's summer reading list

President Barack Obama is on Martha's Vineyard for his annual two-week summer holiday, and the White House has released his reading list. Continue reading at Stuff

[ Stuff | 2015-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #president obama #white house